Escaping Trains
by Magemaster
Summary: Edward has spent the last four years hunting humans. Now he just doesn't want to go home. He comes across a girl he wants to both drain and protect. BE AJ Friends and love are waiting to be shared.
1. Chapter 1

Escaping Trains

I OWN NOTHING!

* * *

This was the fifth train he'd been on so far. He could run faster, but that wasn't the point. It had been four years since he'd last been home. It had been four months since he'd last tasted human blood. His eyes were back to a golden hue, no trace of crimson remaining.

Edward's rebellion was over, but he still couldn't bring himself to return to Carlisle and Esme. So now he was train hopping across the country like a human hobo. There were so many of them that one vampire with gold eyes went mostly unnoticed.

Sighing, Edward slipped from the roof of the boxcar and inside. No one else was inside, or else he'd have stayed where he was. However, once he'd slid the door closed and cut off the moving air, an amazing, mouthwatering scent hit him.

He had to have it. Venom flooded his mouth as he turned to locate where the scent was coming from. A girl with short mahogany hair and dressed as a boy lay sleeping curled up in a corner half hidden by the crates that took up much of the narrow space. With a start, he realized that no thoughts came from the girl. The thoughts of others still whispered in his mind, so it was only this girl he could not read.

That thought allowed him to regain enough control to go to the opposite end of the car. He would have left, but at that moment the train pulled into a town. New thoughts bombarded him, mostly the complaints of the workers who would rather have been in bed.

Edward glanced at the girl. The workers would find them both. The men had no chance of harming him, but the girl was another story entirely. He'd only seen a group of hobos caught once, but that was enough.

Without out really thinking, he grabbed the girl and the worn bag beside her before jumping out of the boxcar. Quickly, he made his escape into a small, useless shack. Well, not completely useless. It hid the both of them.

Edward hardly breathed. The girl's scent was overpowering. He wanted to taste her so badly that he was barely controlling himself. Yet the longer he spent watching her and listening for anyone to approach the shack, the more he became accustomed to it.

"Who are you?"

Edward turned from the window to look at the now awake girl. She gasped and huddled into the corner, her bag clutched to her.

"Why haven't you eaten me yet?" She demanded, her fear obvious.

"Why would I eat you?" Edward asked, annoyed and curious. Could this girl know what he was?

"You're a vampire," the girl replied. ""I'm not going to be missed when you kill me. So why haven't you?"

The girl was brave, if not very good at survival. Of course, since she knew what he was, she would also know that running was a useless endeavor.

"I don't hunt humans," Edward told her. "I'm not going to harm you, I promise." He would keep that promise no matter what. He'd never killed an innocent and he was determined to keep it that way.

The girl relaxed slightly. She believed him, even if he was a vampire. She didn't fully understand _why_ she believed him, but she did.

Edward left the window as the sun moved across the sky. This left him with only the girl to look at. Edward looked the girl over. Despite the dirt, she was fairly pretty. He was slowly becoming accustomed to her scent. Her mind was still closed to him and that made him both curious and frustrated. He shouldn't be curious, but if the girl knew about vampires she was in danger. Not only from him, but from any vampire she stumbled across. Or that stumbled across her.

She was also observing him. His eyes were a dark topaz, not crimson. It was his pale skin and the dark circles under his eyes along with his inhuman beauty than had given him away. Slowly, she felt her fear leave her. If he was going to kill her, he'd have done it already.

"I'm Bella," she broke the silence. He started, obviously not expecting her to say anything.

"What?"

"My name is Bella," she spoke slowly.

Edward grinned a bit. Bella fit the girl. "Edward Cullen." He almost used Masen, but that wasn't who he was now.

"Why, if you don't hunt humans, were you jumping trains?" Bella's curiosity came forward. He must have jumped at least the train she'd been on if they were both in a shack she didn't recall moving to.

Edward shook his head. "Why were you?" Bella couldn't have been older then fifteen or sixteen. She belonged safe at home, not stuck in a run-down train yard shack with him.

"Because vampires killed my parents and tried to kill me." Bella replied. "As far as I know, everyone who knew me thinks I died in the fire that destroyed my home and hid the nature of my parents deaths."

Edward stared at the girl. Honestly, he hadn't expected an answer. Now at least he knew why she was riding in boxcars.

"How did you escape?" Not many humans could escape a vampire, no one escaped a coven bent on draining them dry. Bella had said 'vampires', so he was assuming it was more then one.

"I ran outside into the sunlight and onto one of the trains. The train started moving out." Bella blushed. "I don't even know if they're after me or not, but I can't go home either way."

Edward watched as blood flooded her face. It made her scent stronger. He pressed himself closer to the wall and into the shadows. He was not going to harm Bella.

Both froze as voices from the worker came towards the shack. Instantly, Edward was crouched over Bella and hiding her from view and himself in the shadows. The small group of men didn't come in, just opened the door to stand behind so that they could smoke instead of work.

Bella lay frozen, hardly daring to breath. Edward was cold, but it wasn't unpleasant. Neither of them dared to move.

Edward fought with himself. Bella was warm and he was almost hyperaware of her. Bella was blushing and her scent was even stronger now that he was so close. It was taking everything he had not to lean down those few scant inches and bury himself in her neck.

The workers talk turned to their various conquests. Edward had to refrain from growling in annoyance. Bella had begun to shake, from cold or fear Edward didn't know but either way there wasn't anything he could do about it.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, the men's absence was discovered and the foreman found them. As soon as Edward was sure all of the men were gone he moved off of Bella as if she'd burned him. Bella curled up and continued to shake. Edward could hear and smell her tears.

"I'm sorry," he rasped out, throat burning. "I wasn't trying to scare you."

"It's not you," Bella replied, wiping at her tears. She hated that she cried when she was upset.

"The men?" Edward asked softly, his concern for the girl helping to push the monster back.

Bella nodded. "It's the worst part of this," she said softly. "Its why I dress like a boy, they tend not to notice boys."

Edward didn't understand why he wanted to protect her. Bella couldn't stay with him. She could survive on her own. She'd been doing just fine before they'd met. He tried to convince himself that she'd still be fine once they parted ways. At least now her clothing and hair was explained. It wouldn't fool a vampire, but it obviously fooled humans.

They didn't talk after that. Bella seemed to know that as soon as the sun went down he'd be leaving. Edward tried to ignore Bella's stomach as it growled in hunger, but it nagged at him. He couldn't help but wonder when she had last eaten.

Once it was dark enough, Edward left. Every part of him wanted to go back, but he refused to give in least the monster part of him that wanted Bella's blood won. Bella uttered a soft goodbye. Edward heard it and he almost turned around. Almost.

He wondered around town, taking in likely places where he'd find something to ease his thirst. He managed to find a few deer in a heavily forested park and drained them. Instead of continuing on however, he found himself moving back into the town. He couldn't place it, but something was off.

Edward entered a small grocery store. Looking around, he almost left. He didn't need the food, not that there was much to choose from. Still, he found himself reasoning, it would be odd to pass thru a town and not eat anything when he knew he'd been noticed. At least that was what he was telling himself.

When he found he was heading back towards the train yard after buying a small bottle of milk, a loaf of bread, and a few apples, he cursed himself. He should be running the other way, not going back to the girl. _Bella_, his traitorous mind thought, probably wasn't even there anymore. Still, he looked into the minds of the townspeople to see if they had seen her.

Edward growled as he found a small group of men thinking about Bella. Not only thinking about her, but cornering her. They were terrifying her and enjoying it!

Quickly, he began to run. He didn't truly begin running until he knew no one would see him. Almost without noticing, he arrived a few feet behind the men. Edward searched and found Bella's eyes.

"Leave her alone," Edward barely restrained the growl in his voice. "Bella, come here."

Bella, scared of the men more then she was of Edward, tripped her way towards the vampire. One of the men grabbed her arm and squeezed.

"Now, now, we haven't had our fun yet," said the man who had grabbed her, "go away boy, this whore is none of your business."

_**MINE! **_The monster cried out, actually in agreement with the more humane and civilized part of him. Bella looked at Edward, pleading with her eyes for help.

Edward chuckled darkly. "I used to kill people like you," he knew his eyes were black as pitch again. He stepped forward, causing all of the men to step back and one to run away. He held gazes with the man holding Bella.

Bella, for her part, was fighting the man's hold. She refused to cry out even though he was hurting her. Somehow, Edward wasn't scaring her. That, or she was so scared as it was that any fear she felt towards the menacing vampire was simply swallowed up.

As Edward stalked closer, more of the men turned and ran away. When only the man holding Bella was left, Edward smiled. His smile revealed all of his extremely sharp teeth.

"Boo."

The man screamed and fled, dropping Bella in his rush to get away. Edward fought the urge to give chase. Bella hugging him brought his attention to her instead of anything else.

"Thank you," Bella said softly, tears still making trails down her face.

"You're welcome," Edward replied, looking her over. There was a bruise on her arm and a few scratches. "How badly did they hurt you?"

Bella blushed again. "I tripped trying to find a train and they heard me. They scared me more then anything else." She looked up at him. "I thought you'd be miles away from here by now."

Edward shrugged. "I had to hunt, unless you want to become my next meal?" He had no idea why he was joking about this, but it may also scare some sense into Bella to stay away from vampires.

"Oh," she paused, "you were going to come back? Why?"

Edward sighed again. "For some reason I find myself drawn to you." He told her truthfully. "I can leave if you wish me to do so."

"I don't want you to go away," Bella admitted. "I feel safe with you, even though I don't understand why." She looked down, spotting the bag of food he still had in his hand. "Why do you have food? I thought vampires drank blood?"

Edward grinned. "I do, and its for you. How long has it been since you've eaten?"

Bella blushed harder. "I don't remember."

That worried him. He led Bella towards the track where they could catch a train when one came by. He watched as she devoured half the bread, an apple, and most of the milk. When she shivered, he gave he his coat and refused to take it back.

"How long have you been on the road?" Edward asked, that being one of the many pieces of knowledge he didn't know about Bella. He couldn't read her mind so he'd have to find out the old fashioned way, by talking.

Bella shrugged. "What's the date?"

Edward thought back to the last calendar he'd seen and added two days. "September 29, 1931."

"Five months," she replied. She didn't mention that she'd missed her birthday. At least she was seventeen now. She knew she didn't look like a seventeen year old girl and she didn't really act like one, but that helped with playing a boy. "How long have you been traveling?"

"Four years, almost five," he replied, "I just haven't gone home."

"Why did you leave?" She waited. "You're not going to scare me away if you tell me the truth. I don't get scared that often, despite what you've seen today."

Edward looked at her. She hardly even blinked and refused to drop her gaze. He believed her.

"My family doesn't hunt humans," he explained, "we hunt animals. I was tired of abstaining from my nature and so rebelled." He met her gaze again, expecting revulsion and fear, but found only curiosity. "My parents, Carlisle and Esme, let me go. For four years I hunted those I deemed unworthy of life, the murders and rapists and other humans like that, but even then the guilt was to much. They were still human and I had no right to play God in deciding when they should die."

"Why didn't you go home?" Bella could hardly see him in the dark, but he didn't seem to have any trouble seeing her.

"I'm not sure," he admitted, "I'm just not ready to go home yet. I'm no longer sure where they're living anymore."

Their talking continued until Bella fell asleep. Edward hunted as close as he dared, preparing himself to spend an unknown amount of time with Bella. It was odd, traveling with someone. With a small degree of shock, Edward realized he'd been lonely.


	2. Chapter 2

Escaping Trains

Chapter 2

I OWN NOTHING!!!

* * *

He heard the train before he saw it. Running, he made it back to Bella in seconds. Gently he picked her up and secured her to his back, leaving his arms free. He prepared to jump. Silently, he got them unto another boxcar and made sure they were safely inside. He set Bella down behind some crates, making sure she was hidden incase of a brief stop in order for the cars to be checked for stowaways.

Finding the thoughts of those onboard the train, mainly that of the conductor, he tried to find out how long it would be until the next stop and where that stop would be. The train's final destination was somewhere in Wisconsin, but the conductor was more interested in the two day layover in Chicago. That was only two days away. Edward believed they could both hold out for that long. He hoped the could anyway.

When he'd left, Carlisle had tried to insure that Edward would have some money in case he needed it. Edward, angry, had left all of it safely stored in his safety deposit box in the bank his parents had used. All $500 would still be there. He really had no use for it at the time. Now he did.

Bella woke up several hours later, groggy and needing to use the bathroom. She wasn't all that surprised to find herself in a boxcar and Edward not that far away.

How was she supposed to go pee if he was here? It wasn't as if she could ask him to leave! It was full daylight outside, whatever happened to vampires in the sunlight she couldn't allow to happen to Edward, not when everything she had ever read about vampires said they burned in sunlight. It had only been Bram Stoker's book, admittedly, but still that was all she had to go on.

"Are you alright?" Edward asked, concerned.

Bella felt herself become red. "I, uh, need a human moment."

Edward looked at her strangely before it clicked. If he was able to blush, he'd be doing so right now.

"Oh," he replied, not knowing how to help. "I'll, um, look away."

Bella, completely and totally embarrassed, dug in her bag for one of the scrap fabrics she kept for this purpose. She went as quickly as she could and shoved the soiled rag out thru a crack in the side of the boxcar.

"We'll be in Chicago in about a day and a half," Edward spoke, trying to erase the embarrassment he knew the both of them felt. "I have an errand I need to take care of, but we'll be there for two days if we want to take this train all the way up into Wisconsin."

"How do you know where we're going?" Bella asked, knowing they were the only ones in the car. She didn't think Edward had left to talk to anyone else on the train.

Edward sighed. "You don't know that much about vampires, do you? Other then we're monsters?"

"I don't think you're a monster, not any more. A monster wouldn't be helping me or anyone else." Bella replied, stubbornly glaring at Edward for calling himself a monster. "I know you killed humans, you just told me! However, that's part of your nature just like its part of my nature to be abnormally clumsy and blushing at everything that embarrasses me."

"You don't understand," Edward growled, annoyed when Bella didn't even flinch. "I was so close to killing you in that boxcar yesterday. If I'd been able to read your mind, you wouldn't be here right now!"

"Vampires can read minds?" Bella was slightly shaken at learning Edward had wanted to make a snack out of her, but brushed it aside.

"I can," Edward corrected, "every mind I have ever come across except for yours. I don't know if any other vampires can read minds."

"I'm glad you can't read my mind," Bella told him, "you'd be bored to tears."

"Vampires can't cry, or sleep," Edward told her, wondering why (and how) she had gone from the terrified girl this time yesterday to the curious and most definitely not terrified young woman facing him now.

"How sad," Bella murmured, knowing he'd hear her even if she didn't want him to. She looked at him. "That must be hard, not being able to relax and forget everything and not being able to dream."

Edward stared at her. Then he burst out laughing. Bella could quite possibly become his next meal and she thought it sad that he couldn't sleep?

Bella growled, or at least she attempted to. This only made Edward laugh harder. She tossed her bag at him, hearing the 'thunk' as it hit him. Edward finally got a hold of his laughter.

"You enjoy the classics?" He looked into her bag, discovering mostly worn copies of Jane Austin and a few pieces of fabric.

"Yes," Bella replied, still annoyed that he had laughed at her. Edward had a beautiful laugh, but Bella was realistic. He was more then likely going to leave her at some orphanage in Chicago or something similar. What vampire would want a human hanging around unless he was planning an eating her? "May I have my bag back?"

"Here," he handed it to her.

Bella gasped, not having expected him to move that quickly. "Wow, why are you taking trains again? They must feel so slow to you."

"They do," Edward grinned, "but jumping trains is sort of fun, not to mention one can move easily from place to place without very many questions asked."

Bella nodded. After all, trains also made it harder (she hoped) for any vampires that may or may not be after her to find her.

"How old are you Bella?" Edward asked.

"Seventeen," she answered without thinking. "I know, I don't look it, but I'm not lying."

Edward shook his head. "I know, something tells me you don't lie very well."

"I don't, my mother could always read me easily." Bella felt tears gather in her eyes but forced them back. "It wasn't worth lying when it never worked. I don't like lying very much to begin with." Bella looked at him. "How old are you?"

"Seventeen," Edward replied without missing a beat. He grinned.

"How long have you been seventeen? I mean, vampires are immortal, right?"

"A while," Edward replied. "Yes, vampires are immortal. We don't age, grow, or die. It is very difficult to kill a vampire."

"So sunlight doesn't hurt you?" Bella asked, glancing at the thin rays that came in thru the cracks of the boxcar.

"Myth," Edward replied, "I'll show you sometime what I look like in the sun. Stakes and crosses don't bother me either."

"Obviously you don't sleep in a coffin," Bella added in, grinning.

Edward couldn't help it. He laughed again. Bella was cute, wrapped up in his coat and questioning him about himself. It was refreshing and freeing. Thoughts of leaving her pained him, but so did thoughts of changing her.

That is how their next several hours went. Edward watched her eat in mixed disgust and fascination. Once the food was gone, Bella didn't complain. She still had Edward's coat to curl up in. Slowly they had been moving closer to each other. By the time they reached Chicago, Bella had taken to using Edward's crossed legs as a pillow. Edward discovered she talked in her sleep, but found it interesting. Bella never censored her thoughts when she was sleeping.

Once in Chicago, Edward found them a place to stay. Luckily it was the fall and there was a lot of cloud cover and little daylight. Once he knew Bella would be safe in his old home (which he still owned thanks to Carlisle), he went to gather funds from the bank (one of the few still in business in the city) and shopping for food for Bella.

The well in the garden was still good, so they had water even if it was cold. Bella didn't care, she got to take a bath and really wash. Even though she was upset he had spent money on her, she accepted the clothing. Thankfully, he hadn't picked up any dresses, rather more boy clothing. He'd also gotten her a few new books and a new, bigger bag for her to carry her things in.

Edward had picked up new clothing for himself as well, including a new coat. He liked the sight of Bella in his coat. He was glad when Bella didn't ask him about it. He couldn't lie to her, not when her trust in him was still a fragile thing. He knew from her sleep talking that she believed he was going to leave her.

He wasn't. That had already been decided. He didn't know how she had managed to jump trains when she wasn't able to always walk on a perfectly flat surface without tripping. Plus, by him staying it meant she'd always have something to eat.

Finally, after three days, they jumped onto another train. This train was headed to Montana. Upon agreement, they were going the entire way. Again, the trip was spent talking, joking, and really just the two of them becoming friends. Bella trusted Edward without question. Edward found he was falling in love with the girl and couldn't stop himself.

"Hey, newbie," Edward sat up from cuddling with Bella as he heard the voice of one of the porters. "Time to check the boxcars for stowaways."

Edward heard his thoughts and growled. They would not touch his Bella like that! Her hair was growing out and she looked less like a boy. She would have cut it, but Edward liked it when it was long. His growling woke Bella, who looked at him.

He motioned for her to be quiet. "We need to leave, come on." He stood, and made his way to the door. They weren't moving very fast, which was good because they would have to jump.

With a jolt, Edward nearly lost his balance. He looked at Bella, who had tumbled over when the train had jolted. He went to reach for her when the train picked up speed. This time he did over balance and tumbled out of the boxcar. He caught himself, but not in enough time to stop Bella from tumbling out of the boxcar.

In pure fear, he launched himself to garb her. He barely managed it, and they rolled several times.

"Don't ever scare me like that again!" Edward snarled, hugging her to him once he was sure that nothing was broken, not even her skin. They'd already had an incident and that was how Edward discovered she fainted at the sight of human blood. Obviously he couldn't leave (she'd probably have bled to death), so he'd had to take care of her without attacking her and killing her. He'd passed with flying colors.

"I'm sorry!" Bella mumbled, hugging him tightly. "I was so scared when you just fell out of the car! I wasn't thinking," she sobbed, "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you Edward!"

Edward held her. "I don't know what I'd do without you either Bella," he told her. "You are my life now, nothing will change that."

"I love you," Bella said softly. "I know you probably can't love me, I'm just a plain human. I need you to know though that I love you, I think I always have." She couldn't bring herself to look at him, afraid of the rejection she believed that she would see on his face.

"Silly Bella," Edward breathed, "I shouldn't, but I love you as well. An angel like you would be much safer far away from a monster like me."

"Don't call yourself a monster! You're not one!" Bella growled at him, knowing that it usually made him laugh. "I love you because you're _Edward_, not because you're a vampire. You could have three eyes and webbed feet and I'd still love you."

Edward found himself smiling. She loved him! Bella loved him! He kissed her, soft and hesitantly. Bella kissed back, unsure and blushing. At least the first kiss was. The rest were natural.


	3. Chapter 3

Escaping Trains

Chapter 3

I OWN NOTHING!!!!

* * *

Bella sighed, content as she snuggled into Edward's cold side. It was now early December. She was wearing both her coat, Edward's coat, and the blanket Edward had gotten for her. He'd offered her an actual pillow, but she preferred him to anything else. He had still gotten her one for when he went hunting, but more often then not when he returned he found Bella using her bag as a pillow and the pillow as something to snuggle with.

Still, they were perfectly content at the moment despite the cold. They were in a small clearing seated beside the fire Edward had made for her. Even with having to sleep in all of her clothing, Bella wouldn't exchange her life for anyone else's. Home, as far as she was concerned, was wherever Edward happened to be.

"May we join you by your fire?" A voice, bell-like and happy, ringed out in the cold night air.

Bella was instantly behind Edward, who was crouched in front of her protectively. Bella lay frozen. Edward wouldn't have reacted like that with humans. She remembered when he had snatched her up and run with her because he had caught the scents of others of his kind.

A short girl with slightly spiky black hair and a tall male with curly blonde hair stepped into the light of the fire. They both had gold eyes, even though the male looked slightly uncomfortable and stared at Bella as if she were something to eat. Which, she thought, she technically was.

"I'm Alice," the girl said with a smile, "this is my mate Jasper. We've been looking for you Edward, and Bella."

"How do you know our names?" Edward demanded, not taking his eyes off of Jasper.

"I can see the future," Alice said, completely undisturbed by Edward's demeanor as she sat down. "We're going to be sibling and friends," she explained.

Jasper sighed, "If you don't want us here, we'll leave." He gazed at his mate and Edward sighed.

"You may stay," he said, "is that alright Bella?"

"That's fine," Bella agreed, yawning. "My boyfriend can read minds, what's a sister who can see the future?"

Edward laughed. "Only you, Bella, would be perfectly at ease about this." He looked at Jasper, knowing his power from Alice's mind as well as his own when he thought about keeping them all calm.

He easily slipped back into his spot, letting Bella curl up to him. "Sleep now love, I'm not leaving tonight."

"M'kay," Bella, just like if the two newcomers weren't there, dropped off into sleep.

"I'm so glad we found you two Edward," Alice broke the silence, speaking softly so that she wouldn't wake up Bella.

"Why were you searching for us?" Edward asked, acting exactly how Alice had seen him do so. His entire life revolved around the human woman curled up next to him, he'd protect her with everything he had.

So Alice told him her story, or rather what she knew of it. Jasper added in his own, explaining the scars Edward had seen on his face. He knew Edward was wary of him, with Bella so nearby, but Jasper stayed as far from her as possible. He hardly left Alice's side.

Things were tense between the three vampires. Jasper didn't want to attack Bella and he was under no illusions about his control. Edward was wary of Jasper because there was still a slightly crimson tint to his eyes. Alice was trying to mediate between them, trying to convince the both of them that Jasper wasn't going to hurt Bella.

By the time Bella woke up the next morning, they had reached an uneasy truce. Bella herself felt uneasy as all three vampires watched her eat. Edward she was used to, especially once he'd explained why he stared.

She stood up, stumbling a bit as she did so. Edward glanced at her.

"Human moment?" At Bella's blush, he chuckled, pointing her in the direction of the small creek they had come across the night before.

"Do you mind if I go with you Bella?" Alice stood.

Edward blinked, surprised at the height difference between the two girls. Alice was tiny, pixie-like. She couldn't even be five foot! She had told him last night that she wasn't sure how old she'd been when she was turned. She had remembered her name and that was it, really. She'd had a vision of Jasper and one of himself and Carlisle. Edward remembered that day, Carlisle had been teaching him the reason behind hunting animals verses humans. He eyed the tiny vampire, she was probably around seventeen or eighteen. Children didn't carry themselves like adults, and Alice carried herself as an adult.

Bella smiled, "No, I don't mind. Knowing me, I'd fall in."

"Bella, please don't joke about that," Edward asked her, "Are you asking for trouble?"

"I don't have to ask for it," Bella retorted, sticking her tongue out at him. "It finds me on its own without prompting."

Edward stared at her. "Did you just stick your tongue out at me?"

Alice giggled, fully enjoying their interactions. Bella didn't answer him, just turned and began walking towards the creek. Alice appeared beside her, catching her before she could fall. Edward stared after them, still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that Bella had stuck her tongue out at him.

"Is she always like that?" Jasper asked softly, his southern drawl apparent.

"Yes," Edward replied. "Is Alice always that cheerful?"

"Usually," Jasper replied. "How can you stand being so close to her without hurting her?" He couldn't understand it. He knew he'd never be able to do such a thing.

Edward looked at him. "Because being apart from her is something I can't handle. If Alice left, would you be able to handle it?"

"No," Jasper didn't hesitate. Life wasn't worth anything with out his Alice. Her way of hunting was painless and there was no regret and depression for him. Animals didn't taste as good as humans, but it was something he knew he'd have to get used to. So far he'd only slipped up once. Alice had comforted him, reassuring him that it would take time for him to adjust.

They were immortal vampires. They had time aplenty.

They stared at each other, not talking. When the girls returned, they each went to the man that was theirs.

"Are we leaving now?" Bella asked Edward, folding up the blanket and handing it to him. She carried the bag and Edward carried her.

"Yes," Edward told her. "Train or running?"

"There's going to be a snowstorm in a few hours," Alice spoke up. "If we take a train it'll be warmer for Bella."

"Yes, but slower for all of you," Bella didn't want to hold them back anymore then she had to because she was human.

"If we run, we'll run right into the storm." Alice opened her eyes.

"Train it is then," Edward placed a finger against Bella's lips to stop her protest. She glowered at him before nodding. He was doing what he thought was best. She had to admit, she'd prefer a train to traveling in a snowstorm.

"Alice," Jasper looked at his mate. How was he going to deal with a train car full of humans?

Alice grinned. "The only human will be Bella," she told him, "you'll be fine Jasper."

Bella hugged herself closer to Edward. She didn't want to cause anyone pain and it appeared that her mere presence was causing pain for Jasper. Edward had already told her that the pain was worth it for him, because he loved her.

Edward hugged her back before lifting her onto his back. He took off, knowing that Alice and Jasper had fallen in behind him. He grinned when he felt Bella's grin. She had her head tucked into his shoulder, protecting her face from the icy wind, but she was enjoying the speed. She'd gotten used to it by now and had learned to enjoy it.

That was the start of their lives with Alice and Jasper. It turned out to help Jasper to be around Bella, since she smelled so appetizing. Most of the other humans seemed to pale in comparison, meaning that his control was strengthened as he resisted the allure of Bella's blood. Alice was responsible for keeping them all out of trouble. She also revealed her talent for predicting poker hands. They didn't need much, since Bella was the only one who needed food, but it was nice to be able to have clean clothing that wasn't worn down to threads and even to be inside when they were 'resting' instead of outside.

Bella and Alice were in charge of the train jumping, finding the trains that they would be jumping on. That was what they were doing when they came across another vampire. Alice saw her first, in a vision. Bella saw her first in actuality.

"Bella, what is it?" Alice looked at her friend. She had never seen Bella scared, not even when all three of them left to hunt.

"I know her Alice," Bella whispered, barely loud enough for her to hear. She couldn't take her eyes off of the red-haired woman standing near the doorway of the train station.

"Come on Bella," Alice was whispering as well, "we need to get back to the boys."

Bella didn't resist. Her clumsiness even seemed to recede as she put distance between her and the woman. Alice didn't ask any questions. She had her own misgivings about the new vampire in town and she didn't need a vision to give them to her.

Once Edward was in sight, Bella leapt at him. He caught her, holding her to him when he felt her trembling.

"What is it love?" He glanced at Alice who was being held by Jasper. Jasper was trying to calm them both down and keep the both of them calm.

"I, Alice and I saw one of them!" Bella tried to control her tears as she buried her face into Edward's chest.

"Saw one of who? Bella, who scared you?" Edward knew Bella didn't scare easily, despite first impressions. She hadn't batted an eye when Alice and Jasper joined them. She wasn't terrified of much of anything. Not even the thought of having to dance scared her this badly.

"One of the people who killed my parents!" Bella finally got out. They weren't in private, but she knew Edward would understand.

Edward did and he growled. "Did she see you?"

"I don't know," Bella replied, calming down a bit.

"I don't think she did," Alice spoke softly, just loud enough for Bella to hear as well. "If she did, I don't think she recognized Bella. I can't see anything changing in the few days."

"Let's go back to the hotel," Jasper suggested, "I think we've had enough fun for tonight."

Edward nodded in agreement. "Did you girls find where you wanted to go?"

"I just want to leave," Bella said softly, being carried by Edward. She wanted to be as far away from her parents' killers as possible.

"There's a train headed back towards Chicago tomorrow morning," Alice told Jasper and Edward. "We can take that one with no one finding us."

"We'll do that then," Edward agreed. Nothing was going to harm his Bella. Unfortunately, he was slowly coming to the conclusion that the only way to actually assure that was to turn her. He didn't want to do that. He didn't want to damn his angel to a soulless existence. He didn't want her to have to go through that pain.

Jasper and Alice dropped back, guarding Bella. Already she had become a sister to them. One of the reasons Jasper cared was because she didn't judge him on his past actions, nor was she scared of him. Not even after he and Alice had had to run away so that he wouldn't attack her when she had accidentally cut herself. Alice loved her mostly because Bella didn't think she was insane for having visions. Bella liked her no matter what. It simply didn't matter to Bella what they were.

Edward grinned a bit, hearing the thoughts of his two friends. Esme was going to adore Bella and Alice both. Carlisle and Jasper would get along just fine. Rosalie would probably be bitchy until Alice and Bella worked their charm on her and worked their way into her heart. Emmet would be overjoyed in having a new sparing partner. That and he'd have two little sisters to protect.

They quietly made their way into the room in the small motel they had rented. Edward lay on the bed with Bella. All of them were tense. This was something Bella had feared since she had had run away the day her parents died. Even knowing that Edward had wanted to drain upon finding her didn't scare her, made her concerned for his well being around her but didn't scare. The vampires that had killed her parents terrified her.

Bella felt the bed shift as Alice crawled onto it. "Don't worry Bella, nothing is going to happen to you. We won't allow it." Looking at Edward, the tiny she-vampire wrapped her arms around Bella.

Jasper watched his small family. He was concentrating on easing Bella's fear. More often then not he agreed with Edward that she was like a brave kitten. Bella's attempts at growling amused all of them. Now, as he fought to calm her fears, she reminded him of a kitten again. Only this time she was terrified, to terrified to fight. He nearly growled himself at the thought of the vampires that caused this reaction in the girl. It also made it all the more amazing that she felt safe and protected around them instead of being like she was now.

The morning couldn't come soon enough. The second Alice told them it was time to go, Edward already had the finally asleep Bella in his arms and their bag in his back. Jasper took the bag that belonged to him and Alice, picking her up and copying how Edward held Bella. Alice pretended to be asleep, matching her breathing pattern to Bella's.

"Ya'll leavin' now?" The man at the desk asked as they appeared in the lobby.

"Yes," Edward replied, placing the room key on the desk in front of the man before resettling Bella. "Our train is leaving shortly."

The man waved them away, taking the key and returning its to its place. When he turned around, they were gone. Shrugging, he turned back to his newspaper. At least they had paid.

They jumped the train just as the sky was beginning to lighten. Just as Alice had said, no one saw them. No one else was in the boxcar either. There was hardly any room to move, it was filled with crates. Jasper and Alice pushed several aside just enough to make room for them to sit down. They could have stood indefinitely without trouble, but Bella wouldn't have been able to. However, stubborn human that she was, she would've stood with them. This way they didn't have to argue about it.

They didn't stay on the train for very long, at least in vampire terms. They all needed to hunt, none of them wanting to risk losing a fight with Bella so close. Most of their kind would have gotten annoyed, but Bella had a habit of knowing when they needed to hunt and would almost force them to go.

Bella was awake when they jumped off the moving train car. The train was moving full speed, but she hardly felt it from Edward's arms. They only stopped long enough for Bella to take the pack from Edward and climb onto his back. She was hungry, but wasn't going to risk being sick while Edward was running. Nor did she want him to go slowly to try and avoid her being sick. He'd had to walk and then carrying her would have been pointless.

Alice located a secluded clearing, one that showed no signs of ever being touched by humans. It was January now and still bitingly cold. They had added a small tent to their supplies, much to Bella's protests.

Bella, once all three vampires had annoyingly assured she had everything they thought she might need, sent all three of them off to hunt. She glared at Edward, insisting that she could take care of herself. Besides, Alice hadn't seen anything happening to her.

"You know I'm only concerned about you Bella," Edward sighed in defeat.

"I know Edward," Bella caressed his face with her gloved hand, "but I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself. I promise not to leave the clearing. I'll be right here when you all get back." She worried about Edward as well, she couldn't even begin to imagine what she would do without him. She hadn't worked up the courage to ask him to change her, mostly because she didn't want to fight about it. She'd already dealt with his 'monster issues' several times and knew that asking him to change her would only bring those things back up once again.

"She'll be fine Edward," Alice fought the grin that threatened to spread across her face. "I'll keep an eye on her."

"See?" Bella coaxed him, "I'll be perfectly fine. Now go hunt. Catch a mountain lion or two."

Edward chuckled, shaking his head. Only he would manage to find the one human that wasn't bothered by what he was along with being immune to his power. He kissed her softly.

"I'll be back as soon as I can be Love." He promised her.

"Love you," Bella returned his kiss. "Now go on, Jasper and Alice have already left you behind."

Edward looked up, now realizing that their friends had indeed left him. With one last look at Bella, he left the clearing.

Bella watched as he disappeared. She then turned to fix herself something to eat and set a pot of water to boil for tea. She had never enjoyed coffee and so didn't drink it. Alice had suggested and gotten her tea because of her own curiosity. Bella had taken a liking to it and it tasted much better then any of the coffee she'd ever tried.

Jasper had set up the tent. Alice and Edward had ensured Bella would have enough wood until they returned. There was plenty of clean snow for Bella to melt for water. So she settled in, pulling out a book to read by the light of her campfire.


	4. Chapter 4

Escaping Trains

Chapter 4

I OWN NOTHING!!!!

* * *

A branch snapped. Bella looked up, not seeing anyone. Her vampires would have alerted her if it were them. Even Jasper, who moved much more silently then either Edward or Alice, always said his own quiet 'hello' when he returned from hunting. She was on alert. Bella knew better then to say anything first.

"What do we have here?" A voice spoke calmly, nearly child-like in its quality. Bella almost winched at the sound. "She looks so familiar, doesn't she James?"

Bella looked up as two gusts of air moved in front of her. Her eyes widened as she took in the two vampires, both with blazing crimson eyes.

"It's the girl that ran away," the male looked at her and Bella fought the instinct to flinch away.

Her throat was locked up and she was having trouble breathing. She recognized the two beings in front of her. The red-haired woman was from the train station. The man, and the woman, were the same vampires that had killed her parents.

"Are we going to share her?" The woman asked, staring at Bella. "She smells so sweet James."

"Calm yourself Victoria," James spoke again, looking Bella over. "I say we play with her a little bit first."

Bella froze even further. Play with her? This wasn't good. In fact, it actually caused her to scramble to her feet and begin backing away. Not that it did much good.

James leapt forward, over the fire, and grabbed her. Bella screamed.

"EDWARD!"

This amused her tormentors.

"You're little vampire friends are to far away to hear you scream my dear." James traced her face. Bella knew better then to bite, since that would only harm her and not James.

"I want to play to James," Victoria pouted, "you always break them."

Bella tried to break his hold, not that it worked.

James shrugged and tossed her, right into Victoria's hands. Victoria tossed her back. Bella whimpered when she felt her arm crack at the point James grabbed her. She actually cried out when he wrenched her arm roughly behind her back and lifted her.

"I don't think she's enjoying this to much," she couldn't see his face, but she could see Victoria's. The woman was grinning, widely.

"We'll need to fix that," she said.

Bella felt sick. She cried out again as James tossed her onto the ground and let her go. She tried to scramble away, but one of them stepped on her leg and broke it. Bella screamed this time. She continued to cry out as pressure was applied.

Then she smelt it, blood. She recalled Edward telling her humans couldn't smell blood. She could, and described it to him as a mix of rust and salt. This wasn't good. The pain was already making her head fuzzy. The blood, her blood, made it worse as her stomach tried to expel what she'd eaten for dinner.

The pressure was suddenly gone from her leg and loud snarling ripped throughout the clearing. Bella tried to curl up, but every movement caused the pain to worsen. She winched as screeching rent the air. Bella couldn't see what was going on, but she didn't really want to.

Cold hands touched her and she flinched away.

"It's just me Bella," Edward nearly cried at the sight of his love. "I'm sorry it took us so long to get here. You're going to be fine Bella."

"It hurts Edward," Bella groaned out.

Alice kept a hold on Jasper, who was fighting with himself and staring at the clear sight of Bella's blood. Alice moaned as flashes moved thru her mind.

"You need to change her," she cried out, "Bella won't survive otherwise!"

Alice knew Edward could read her mind. Their entire future hinged on his decision. Edward fought with himself. He couldn't damn his angel, his Bella, to this soulless existence. Yet, could he live without her?

That last thought decided him. He bit down, winching when Bella cried out in pain. Quickly, trying to drink as littlie of her blood as possible (and trying extremely hard not to think about what he was doing), he bit both her wrists. He licked each cut to seal his venom inside.

Alice, holding her breath, appeared beside him to help him take care of Bella's leg. Jasper had run off, trying to get as far away from Bella as possible so that he didn't attack her. He made sure all of the two vampires remains burned first, needing a distraction while Edward turned his human.

In his mind, Jasper was going through everything he knew about newborns. He knew that they'd have to keep Bella away from civilization for the first year or so. He was not looking forward to the violent emotions newborn vampires had.

Alice joined him just as the sun was cresting the sky. She sat beside him and leaned into him, offering him what comfort she could give. Alice made sure he could feel her love for him, and the pride she felt that he hadn't harmed Bella even with her blood fresh on the ground.

"How are they?" Jasper asked, finally breaking their silence.

"Edward's feeling guilty and Bella's in pain." Alice sighed. "I don't remember anything before I woke up, not even the pain of the transformation." She shivered. "Is it always that violent?"

"Yes," Jasper replied without hesitation. He didn't elaborate and Alice didn't ask.

"We should get back," Alice broke the silence again. "Edward will need our help, though he's going to be surprised."

So they returned. They found Edward holding Bella, trying to keep her calm as she whimpered in pain and tried to thrash around. Blood was no longer flowing from her rapidly healing wounds. There were already noticeable differences in her appearance.

Jasper sent out a heavy wave of every good emotion his mind could come up with to try and keep them all calm. He and Alice cleaned up the small clearing, hiding all evidence that a fight took place.

For three days they sat there, watching as Bella became one of them. Sometimes it became to much for Jasper and Alice and they had to leave. Edward never left and he never let go of Bella. Near the end of the third day, her heart stopped and she opened her eyes.

"Edward?" Bella blinked her now crimson eyes, taking in what her human senses had been unable to show her. All she could remember at the moment was the never ending fire which was now concentrated in her throat.

"Bella," Edward spoke in a pained whisper. "I'm so sorry Bella, it was the only way to save you."

Bella, not fully understanding, kissed him to stop his talking. "You have nothing to apologize for Edward," she looked down, slightly embarrassed. "I wanted this, ever since I knew I loved you. I want eternity with you Edward. Please don't regret saving me."

"You wanted to became a monster?" Edward shook his head, winching when Bella, not realizing her strength, hit him in the head.

"You aren't a monster Edward." Bella glared at him. "And, yes, I did want to become like you. My blood doesn't hurt you with its scent anymore. You can't harm me if you squeeze me to tightly. You don't have to be so afraid of hurting me."

Edward stared at her. She had actually thought this through before. He sighed. He'd thought Rosalie could be stubborn. His sister had nothing on his Bella.

"I'll never regret saving you," he told her. "Are you thirsty?"

Bella nodded, the thirst becoming more demanding now that Edward had brought her attention to it.

"Let's go hunting then," He stood up and set her on the ground. He still couldn't read her mind. He wondered if that was her power, being able to shield her mind.

They set off together. It wasn't until the wind shifted that Edward became concerned. Humans were nearby and Bella was a newborn. He looked at where his Bella had frozen. She stepped forward slightly and he prepared to leap at her to stop her from attacking the humans. Then she did something completely impossible. Bella turned around and ran away.

Edward followed her. He caught up with her in just enough time to see her leap at a large mountain lion. He was in complete awe as she drained the beast.

"Bella?" He approached her slowly. She turned to him.

"I…I couldn't…I wanted to…" She sobbed, launching herself at him. She had wanted the humans, but had stopped herself.

Edward held her. "It's okay Bella. You didn't hurt anyone. I'm proud of you," he made her look up at him. "I have no idea how you managed to run away, but I'm proud you."

Bella grinned at him and licked the last of the blood off her lips. "I see why you like mountain lion so much. It taste delicious."

Edward laughed at that. Only his Bella.

"Come, I'm sure you want to clean up." He watched as Bella took herself in. She looked at him and nodded.

Edward didn't watch, but he listened as Bella bathed in the cold creek they had come across. He'd already gotten her clean clothing and was currently burning her bloody ones as he told her what had happened. Bella listened as flashes of memory went through her mind.

"Edward," Bella stepped into camp dressed in pants and a shirt, just like she always wore. Only now, even if she cut her hair (which they had both agreed she wasn't going to do), no one would ever mistake her for a boy again. "Where are Alice and Jasper?"

"I'm not sure," Edward replied, "I think they might have gone into town for a bit. I don't know when they'll be back."

"They are coming back though, right?" Bella didn't want to lose the blonde who'd become her older brother or the tiny pixie who was both her sister and best friend.

"Of course they will," Edward assured her. "Alice would have told me if they weren't coming back."

Bella nodded. She approached him, amazed at her graceful she now was. Running earlier had been an interesting experience.

"You know," she kissed him, "I'm not so breakable now." Not knowing what she was doing, she ground into him. They'd had similar insistences where they'd nearly broken the boundaries Edward had set in place.

"I know," Edward kissed her, pouring in everything he felt for her without fear of crushing her skull. "Are you sure?"

"Extremely."

* * *

Alice grimaced. "I didn't need to see that," she muttered just soft enough for Jasper to hear her.

"See what?" Jasper wrapped his arm around her. They had come into town to, he shivered, shop for a few articles of clothing. Bella would be going through, according to Alice (and he never bet against his mate), several before she learned the trick of not getting blood on her clothing.

"I think we should avoid the campsite for a while yet," was all she would say.

Jasper wondered what she meant for about five seconds. "Already?" He'd honestly thought they'd wait. Not that he and Alice had, but Edward was far more stiff then Jasper had ever been.

"Yes," Alice told him. "I never want to see that much of our siblings ever again."

Jasper hugged her. He was glad he was far enough away not to be able to feel their emotions. Otherwise, none of them would have been able to move for awhile. He looked at Alice when she giggled.

"You know," she smiled coyly at him, "it has been a while."

"Are you done shopping for the day my lady?" He asked her, voice deeper as his eyes darkened.

"For today."


	5. Chapter 5

Escaping Trains

Chapter 5

I OWN NOTHING!!!!

* * *

When they met back up two days later, nothing was said. Alice dragged Bella away from the boys to discuss 'girl things'. That effectively assured the boys didn't follow them.

"I'm so proud of you Bella!" Alice hugged her. "I saw you running away from the humans."

Bella grinned. "It surprised Edward," she admitted quietly. "He explained that usually newborn don't have any control over their thirst. What I did is supposed to be impossible."

Alice shrugged. "It's also supposed to be impossible for Edward to have been able to resist your blood when you were human. You smelled amazing appetizing Bella," Alice told her, "that's why Jasper couldn't get close to you. It was hard for me even, and I've not had human blood except for once."

"What happened?" Bella asked, concerned.

"The idiot boy got to close to me," Alice explained. She had _always_ been Jasper's, even if she hadn't met him at the time. "His hand was bleeding at the time. I couldn't stop myself."

Bella hugged her. "Part of what helped me runaway was because while those humans smelled tasty, I could still smell rust and salt the most. It made me feel sick."

Alice laughed. "Bella, you're probably the only vampire that doesn't like the scent of human blood."

Bella shrugged. "I was a strange human. Why should I be a normal vampire?" She grinned. "Race you back to the boys?"

Alice had already run ahead. Bella caught up and raced ahead. She was faster for the time being. Bella won, leaping at Edward and causing them to crash to the ground.

Jasper stared at them before Alice crashed into him. He managed to keep them both standing, mainly because of their size difference. He grinned as she kissed him, kissing her back.

"I like not having to breath anymore," they heard Bella comment when she had Edward broke their kiss. Then they were kissing again.

Jasper cleared his throat. "If you two don't mind, shouldn't we be going?"

"Yes," Alice agreed, "we still have to find the others."

Edward and Bella sighed, getting up. It was time to go. Everyone gathered their things. Then they all took off running. Alice had had several visions of the Cullen family's current location. She didn't recognize where they were, but Edward did.

There was no hurry however. They agreed to continue as they had been. They avoided the overly sunny places unless no humans were around. They discovered that Bella really was a mental shield when she managed to shield Alice's thoughts from Edward one day. Jasper was slightly annoyed when Bella continued to go against the norms for newborn vampires, but then she hadn't been a normal human so why did he expect her to be a normal vampire?

They basically spent the next year and a half going from coast to coast. They did stop long enough to get married and even separated for about a month for their honeymoons. They met back up on a train.

Bella became accustomed to being a vampire. All three of the older vampires were impressed with the amount of control she showed. Then they decided to head home. By now, Edward was convinced that his family would love his mate and their siblings just as much as he did.

* * *

"Esme?" Edward stepped into the house by himself. The other three were waiting on the edge of the woods that bordered the property.

Esme looked up from the plans she had been looking over. "Edward!" She leapt up and hugged her son. He'd been gone for almost six years. She stepped back to look at him. He was different. His eyes were as gold as ever, but he was smiling and happy. She had never seen Edward like this.

"You're never leaving again," she told him, "why haven't you kept in contact with us?"

Edward sighed, ashamed as he heard his mother's worried thoughts. He nearly growled when he heard Jasper's thoughts and new his brother had a hand in how he was feeling.

"I'm sorry Esme," he apologized. "I was ashamed of my actions. I didn't want to come home until I knew I could handle that shame."

"You know we still love you Edward," Esme hugged him again. "We've all missed you, even Rosalie."

Edward rolled his eyes. "I'm sure." He was smiling again.

"What are you so happy about?" Esme asked. He was never this happy. Had her son found someone to be with?

"Yes, Esme I have," he was grinning even wider now. "Would you like to meet her? And our friends?"

"Edward I would be delighted." Esme was smiling as well. She was certain that she would love anyone who could make Edward this happy.

Edward led her outside. Bella smiled nervously as she stepped forward towards Edward and the who must have been his mother Esme. Alice was pushing her to make sure she kept moving while she tugged Jasper's hand to make sure he came with them.

Esme watched as a slim brunette beauty entered the yard, her gold eyes dancing over everything in her nervousness. She looked at the tiny she-vampire pushing the brunette and tugging along a tall blonde male.

"Esme," Edward stepped away from his mother and took the brunette's hand, "this is my mate Bella."

"Hello," Bella managed to say, wanting desperately for the woman to like her.

Esme hugged her. "Hello Bella, it's wonderful to meet you." This caused the girl to relax.

She looked at the now bouncing she-vampire, waiting to know who she and the male were. Edward chuckled.

"Esme, this is Alice. She's been waiting to meet you for a while now." He grinned as Alice shot him a look. "The blonde is her mate Jasper."

"Hello," Jasper greeted the woman. He could feel her curiosity and the love she was already feeling for all of them.

"Hi!" Alice greeted, allowing Jasper to pull her to him. "You can stop laughing Edward, and that doesn't mean you can start Bella!"

"Alice can see the future," Edward explained, "it surprised us to when she showed up and told us she was going to be our sister." He smiled at Bella as he spoke.

Esme smiled as well. "You're all welcomed to my home. Please, come inside. Carlisle will be home soon."

"Emmet and Rosalie will be home tomorrow at twelve fifteen," Alice spoke up. She was noticeably calmer now.

Esme looked at the girl. This was going to be interesting. A mind reader and a physic. She wondered if Bella and Jasper had a gift.

"Both of them do," Edward answered her thought. "Jasper can feel and manipulate emotions and Bella can shield her own mind and the minds of those around her."

Esme blinked, surprised. Four gifted vampires. Carlisle was going to enjoy this.

Carlisle did enjoy it. His curiosity was piqued and he asked several questions. Edward told his parents what he'd been doing in the six years since they had last seen him. Carlisle was surprised and proud of Edward for having the control to be around Bella when she had been human and having the strength to change her. He was highly interested in Bella's distaste for human blood and her shielding ability. Jasper and Alice were both interesting and he had no problems with them becoming a part of the family.

Rosalie wasn't so impressed. Alice annoyed her and Bella did something she had never managed to do, which was gain Edward's attention. Still, neither of them were afraid of her so that was something.

Emmet was overjoyed in not only having Edward back (Carlisle wasn't interested in sparring), but having someone new to wrestle with as well. Alice was so small compared to him that it was comical. Bella had been in awe of his size, but could give as good as she got when it came to pranks.

* * *

"What are you thinking of Love?" Edward and Bella were lying in their bed, relaxing before having to face a new years as high school students yet again.

"Just our past," Bella replied, perfectly content to not having to move from this spot. "How we got here, jumping trains, learning that vampires aren't all bad." She kissed him. Crimson-eyed vampires still made her uneasy. Whenever Aro came to visit, she and Edward would stay around only long enough to be polite before disappearing. Alice and Jasper usually followed.

"Do you ever regret any of it?" Edward asked, already knowing the answer.

"You know I don't." Bella rolled her eyes. It had taken several decades, but Edward had finally stopped seeing himself as a soulless monster.

"It's time to get ready for school," Alice's bubbly nature hadn't changed in the least. "Come on Bella, you're getting dressed with Rose and I today."

Bella groaned. She hated being Alice's life-sized Barbie. Still, it made Alice happy and she didn't do it to often. Alice was much better at fashion then Bella would ever care to be.

"I'll be right there Alice," Bella assured her pixie-sized sister.

"Edward," Alice called again, "your outfit is hanging in your closet. I have your clothing Bella."

"I guess we need to get up," Edward grinned. Bella returned it.

"I guess we do," she kissed him hard, settling herself on top of him.

"We don't have time for that this morning!" Alice's interrupted them, thankfully not entering their bedroom.

"Go make out with Jasper!" Bella called thru the door.

"Don't drag me into this!" Jasper called back. Emmet was rolling on the floor laughing. Not that he would mind in the least, but Alice was anxious to get ready. He knew better then to get in his mate's way.

"Spoil-sport!" Bella called back, getting off of Edward after kissing him again. "School won't go by fast enough."

"It never does," Edward sighed. "Come on love, Alice will actually come in if you don't come out."

"I know," she pouted, but got out of bed anyway.

Forks High, here come the Cullens.


End file.
